Michael Powell was a general’s son who followed his father’s footsteps into the Army. Then, after a jeep accident in Germany cut short his military career, it was the younger Powell who blazed a trail for his father by re-entering government service as a civilian appointee.Colin Powell, of course, is now Secretary of State; Michael Powell worked for the Defense and Justice departments before being tapped by President Clinton to fill a Republican slot as an FCC commissioner in 1997. Clinton’s successor, George W. Bush, named Powell the commission’s chairman in 2001, trusting him to accelerate the ongoing deregulation of the telecommunications industry. Powell’s five-year term ends in June 2002. He is married and the father of two children.